JOHN DURACK:
Family and friends, I'd like to introduce you to the woman who when I inquired of my brother Michael, how one should introduce one's Mother, he said without a moment's hesitation, 'As the luckiest woman in the world, to have five such wonderful children!' And there was mention of a husband, but we thought that children came first.
I give you the luckiest woman in the world,
MOTHER.
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Noni Durack: Well hello everyone. First to say that I'm so very grateful that you all came, some of you from such long distances; very grateful to the boys for organising this, and incidentally very grateful to Talgai Homestead, for turning on such a beautiful day and such a lovely meal. Et cetera.
Now Father Leonard, we're very happy to have you here; you've seen us through a lot of very happy occasions, and some very sad ones, and it's good to have you there. Lovely to have Pat and Brian with us. Pat and Brian have done some very long voyages with Bill and me: up to Rockhampton for a wedding; down the other side of Armidale to Torriburn, to my niece's property; all the way down to my beloved Bathurst, and then up to Oberon and beyond, into the wild mountains beyond Oberon (which they are) to Porter's Retreat, where of course, my great-grandparents put down their roots in the 1830s, and from whom a lot of this mob came. And they've produced some rather wonderful people: one of them, Cardinal Clancy who's probably our most whatever-you-call-it person. (VOICE OFF PROMPTS - "Illustrious!") Illustrious is the word.
Anyhow, Brian and Pat, I'm so pleased that you made the effort to come up, and let's hope we can do some more great trips together.
I'm awfully glad too, that Ida and Ellis are here. Ida's paths and those of the Duracks crossed a long time ago in Broome, 50-odd years ago, Ida? when Ida met up with Bill's two sisters, Elizabeth and Mary. And since then, we've sort of intertwined in various ways: we were all trying to learn Italian together at one stage, I remember that didn't last too long.
It's awfully good to have Rita and Keith here with us, our two long-time neighbours in Nobby, who got us out of various rural crises. And Rita saved our lives on many occasions by bringing over all sorts of lovely goodies when we were nearly starving.
And it's great to have Nanette Roland, who's been a long and very good friend to the Duracks over a great number of years, through thick and thin.
And it's also good to have Peggy Harpham, who's probably my oldest friend in Queensland. Peggy and I were students together at Sancta Sophia College at the University of Sydney, just before the war. And I think we've agreed we were the most privileged people. It was a wonderful time, those years could not have been bettered. But Peggy, I think we've kept on being privileged: we married the right men, and we both produced five sons; and (I don't know that I'd go quite as far as Michael did, but) I must say though, even if I embarrass you, John, Michael, James, Patrick, Matthew, that you did bring an enormous amount of joy to Bill's and my lives. So much interest, sometimes our heads would nearly burst with all the new ideas and everything, still doing so, but really it's been extra, extra good.
And then of course you brought in to the family your lovely wives, and your beautiful grandchildren, of whom I am inordinately proud. I was thinking last night actually, how proud my Mother and Dad would have been to see you all. Most of my boys knew Mother, but you didn't know Dad, but they were a very carefree, exciting couple of parents to have. They had an enormous zest for life, an appreciation of the world, and a sort of sense of wonder that they retained till the day they died. And I hope to God you kids have that same wonderful feeling of being glad to be alive. Mother's great love of course was music, and when I was born she was working through the Beethoven Sonatas, managing to spend hours practising each day. Dad's loves were literature (he was an omnivorous reader) sport (he was quite an athlete) and people. He loved people, and he had the ability to put people at ease, people of all walks of life, nationality; he could immediately put them at ease. And I've always thought that was a great gift.
He also inculcated into us that we must have a respect for our fellow human being, always, and you had to give them a fair go. And I feel very strongly about that.
Anyhow, before Mother died, when she was in her 90s, she had a very serious conversation with Matthew. She said, 'Matthew, there's something I want you to remember, it's vital, most important. You must have fun, lots of fun!' And that's what I'd say to all of you, and I hope you all have some fun here this afternoon.
Thanks very much.
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